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Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Book Review: Hana

I actually feel a little guilty counting Lauren
Oliver's Hana was my 22nd book of 2012, since it is actually a
"novella" and only 47 pages long. But I'm going to go ahead and count it,
largely based on the difficulty that I had getting it. It's only available in
eBook format, and since I don't have an eReader, I thought that I would never
get a chance to read it. Thankfully, then a friend clued me in to a free
download on Barnes and Noble's website that would allow me to read anything made
for Nook on my computer, so after downloading that and a $3 version of the
novella, I was in business. Maybe the reading experience would be slightly
different on a real Kindle or Nook, but reading it on my laptop pretty confirmed
for me that I don't really want one. I'm too attached to the actual pages of an
actual book; I have no interest in reading an on-screen version if there's an
alternative. I can see that eReaders have a definite audience (like, say, those
who travel a lot and don't want to pack tons of books), but give me an actual
print version any way. Perhaps, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer's
librarian Rupert Giles, I'm just too attached to the way that books
smell.

Anyway, I digress.

Hana would best be read as a
companion to Lauren Oliver's Delirium. I read it back in January, and while I
remember most of the details, I kept thinking that I would enjoy Hana
more if reading it directly after Delirium so that I could compare them
better. Hana is essentially the same story as Delirium, but
covering a shorter period in time and told by the character of Hana Trent,
whereas Delirium is told by the main character of the trilogy
(Delirium, Pandemonium, and the upcoming Requiem),
Lena Haloway.

I didn't like Hana's voice nearly as much as Lena's--while
Lena has a lot to overcome and learn, Hana comes across sounding spoiled and
selfish. And with only 47 pages, there's not a lot of space for new plot
development. It was very interesting to see Lena's story from another point of
view, and I was surprised by some of Hana's emotions and reactions. They
definitely leant a completely different perspective to the story. The end of
the story was especially surprising to me; definitely a cliffhanger. In fact,
to be honest, I have to wonder if I'm reading it right at all, because there was
nothing to indicate this development in either Delirium or
Pandemonium. I'm really wondering if it will be addressed in
Requiem, as it seems like a pretty major development to just leave
hanging.

Sorry to leave you all hanging without being able to give more
details of the end-of-story development, but I really think that divulging more
would ruin the story. Just let it suffice to say: if you've read Lauren
Oliver's books, pick this one up for a different perspective. And if you've
also read Hana, then you and I need to discuss the ending. :)